Pregnancy And Emotional States Of The Future Mother

Pregnancy is a great experience for every woman. It is a time of great joy, but also a time filled with anxiety and fears. For some it is a surprise, while other ladies look forward to this moment with anticipation and hope.

Some women experience pregnancy alone, while others share these special moments with their closest and beloved partners.

Either way,  pregnancy is one of the most significant and personal periods in any woman’s life. It is a process during which many changes occur in the body, both physically and mentally. She is accompanied by a mixture of feelings filled with happiness, joy, hope, but also fear and anxiety.

In recent years, thanks to movements initiated, among others, by Vivette Glover, a perinatal psychobiology specialist at Imperial College London, the focus is increasingly on the bond that is formed between the future mother and the child while it is still in her womb.

Research shows how the mother’s emotional states affect the child while still in the womb. In today’s article, you’ll find some tips on emotional education and intimacy before giving birth.

Pregnancy and emotional states

Blessed condition and stress

Usually, when partners find out that they will become parents, they begin to make a list of necessary things and plan for the future. They are able to do everything to ensure that the new family member does not run out of anything. It starts with buying clothes, a cot, a pram, renovating a children’s room, and ends with making dreams, plans and expectations …

Of course, undoubtedly the most important aspect in the first place, more important than whether the child will have the most beautiful clothes, is taking care of the health of the future mother and baby. So what about the emotions of a woman whose role is about to change completely?

Stress is enemy number one

• It is important how the expectant mother experiences her pregnancy. Stress, anxiety, relationship problems, or any other negative emotion directly affects the fetus.
• Dr. Glover spent five years studying women experiencing pregnancy in a highly stressful environment. She also observed its later effects on the child’s development up to the age of four. Well, the children of mothers who were exposed to severe stressors during pregnancy showed more problems with hyperactivity.

The placenta is not a reliable protection for the fetus

• Until recently, it was believed that the placenta protects the fetus from all external factors, especially from hormones related to stress and anxiety. Such compounds include the CRH hormone.
• Moderate levels of stress do not have serious consequences, but if a woman is highly stressed throughout her pregnancy, it may lead to the passage of the hormone and its effects on the fetus.

Emotions and the womb of the mother

Since we avoid smoking, we give up drinking alcohol, eat healthily and try not to expose ourselves to threats from the environment, why not take care of our emotions as well?

It may seem like an insignificant detail, but remember that emotions are actually an explosive mixture of chemicals that affects not only the future mother, but also the offspring.

Therefore, in recent years, more attention has been paid to the emotional education of future mothers. It is implemented in many different ways. Here are some simple examples.

Learn to enjoy the moment and enjoy the growth of new life in your womb

• Negative emotions, anxiety and stress make us start living faster and faster, forgetting what is here and now. In such moments, this beautiful moment misses, and the pregnancy is not lived consciously.
• It is this time that should be dedicated to completely disconnecting from reality and connecting with the unfolding new life.
• Take it slow, take it easy, and don’t worry about tomorrow. Having a baby is a great gift that should be recognized during pregnancy.

The salutary effect of massage and communication

• Something as simple as abdominal massage with cream or oil allows you to get in touch with your unborn baby.
• Enjoy the blessed state with your partner. Speak to the unborn child in a warm tone. Voice, warmth and touch generate positive emotions and the release of endorphins in the expectant mother, and thus also affect the fetus.

Yoga and pregnancy

• There are many centers that offer mother-to-be activities where emotional education is combined with yoga.
• Yoga adapted for pregnant women guarantees relaxation, peace, regaining internal balance and helps to relax the mind and body.

Considering that every woman experiences this wonderful period in an individual way, it is important to take care of your emotions as much as we care for physical health. Everything that the expectant mother experiences, both positive and negative emotions, also affects the fetus.

It is important to remember this because your baby’s emotional development does not begin when he is born. It still starts when it is in mom’s belly. That is why pregnancy is an extremely important moment when a woman should especially take care of her well-being.